New Lincoln exhibit in Gettysburg

Traveling exhibit raises question about Lincoln and the Constitution.

Gettysburg College Library Reserves Coordinator Lisa McNamee sets up the new Lincoln exhibit in the library s main space on Tuesday.
(THE EVENING SUN CLARE BECKER )

The last time Lincoln traveled to Gettysburg, it was on a train. This time around, he came wrapped up in a big red box.

The traveling museum exhibit, "Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War," arrived at Gettysburg College's Musselman Library on Tuesday morning and quickly found itself in the hands of a team of librarians, eager to put the 16th president back together again.

"This is just the perfect time for us to have this exhibit," said librarian Meggan Smith, referencing the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg and the Gettysburg Address. "We knew that we had to apply for it to be here.

Gettysburg College Reference and Instruction Librarian Clinton Baugess and Reserves Coordinator Lisa McNamee line up one of the historical panels showing different stages in Lincoln s life as they set up the exhibit on Tuesday.
(THE EVENING SUN CLARE BECKER )

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Organized by the National Constitution Center and the American Library Association, the exhibit has been traveling to libraries across the United States since 2009 and will continue to make its way around the country through the end of this year. It will be in Gettysburg until April 4, when it will be sent on to another of its 25 total stops.

The exhibit is framed around the constitutional crisis that dominates much of the debate surrounding the Civil War. It invites visitors to put themselves in Lincoln's shoes and to ask themselves some of the most contentious questions of his day, such as, "Was the 'United States' truly one nation, or was it a confederacy of sovereign and separate states? How could a country founded on the belief that 'all men are created equal' tolerate slavery?" And finally, "In a national crisis, would civil liberties be secure?"

These questions introduce the three main themes of the exhibit - divided, bound, and dissent.

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From the first day he was elected, explains the exhibit guide, Lincoln was forced to confront these issues, interpreting the Constitution as he saw fit and influencing American policy and political thought for years to come. A reprint of several drafts in the exhibit of Lincoln's first inaugural address illustrates how the president struggled internally to grapple with these issues.

Lincoln's second-to-last draft ended with a confrontational tone, saying, "With you, and not with me, is the solemn question of 'Shall it be peace, or a sword?'" In the end however, he changed it to, "We are not enemies, but friends... Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection... the mystic chords of memory... will yet swell the chorus of the Union when again touched... by the better angels of our nature."

In this revision, says the museum guide, Lincoln was attempting to balance a divided yet bound nation and to decide the best way to keep the peace while honoring his oath to "preserve, protect, and defend" the Constitution.

As a compliment to the exhibit, visitors can help Lincoln to make these decisions with an online game called, "Abraham Lincoln's Crossroads." Found at constitutioncenter.org/lincoln/ the game features an animated Lincoln who introduces many of his historic situations and asks for the players' help in making a decision.

"So these are my choices," says a worried and computerized Lincoln in one of these scenarios. "Re-supply Fort Sumter to show my administration's resolve to preserve the Union and thereby risk war, or surrender the fort to avoid bloodshed and encourage support for the Union in the Upper South. What should I do?"

Two members of Lincoln's cabinet, Montgomery Blair and William Seward, then pop up beside him, presenting him with both arguments and urging him to heed their advice.

In addition to the computer game, several other learning materials and events will compliment "Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War." These will include the lectures "A Walk Through the Civil War: Tipping the Scales" on Feb. 20 at 7 p.m. at the Kline Theater; "Lincoln and the Border States: A Test of Presidential Leadership" on Feb. 28 at 7:30 p.m. at CUB 260; "Lincoln and the Laws of War" on March 6 at 4 p.m. at CUB 260; "A Walk Through the Civil War: The Curtain Falls" on March 20 at 7 p.m. at the Kline Theater, and "What's Been Forgotten about Lincoln's Forgotten Ally?" on March 26 at 7:30 p.m. at Bowen Auditorium.

A dramatic reading of Lincoln's speeches called "A Reading for Lincoln" will held March 19 at 7 p.m. at the Musselman Library and a Civil War Era Dance Workshop will be held April 2 at 7 p.m. in the CUB Ballroom.

All of these events will be free and open to the public, along with a series of Lincoln-themed special collections that have been on display at the Musselman Library for most of the school year. These include several illustrated paintings of the Gettysburg Address by artist Sam Fink, political cartoons from the election of 1860, and a collection of muskets and swords from the Civil War.

It's all there for people to read, use, and learn, Smith said. And with the addition of yet another Lincoln exhibit, there are even more learning materials from which to choose.